Handheld appliance

ABSTRACT

A handheld appliance includes a user operable button, a switch and an actuator including an arm extending between the button and the switch wherein the button has three linearly spaced positions each position corresponding to a different state for the switch. The arm may include a surface adapted to engage with the switch. The switch may include a lever and the lever is moved by contact with the surface. The lever may have a first position and a second position. The second position of the lever may be a neutral position where the lever is not in contact with the surface. When the lever is in the first position, the surface may engage with the lever. The lever may be housed within a recess of the arm. The switch may comprise a first switch and a second switch which may be longitudinally spaced.

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the priority of United Kingdom ApplicationNo.1614662.3, filed Aug. 30, 2016, the entire contents of which areincorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a handheld appliance and in particular to ahair care appliance such as a hot styling device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In a conventional hot styling appliance, air is drawn into an inlet by afan unit and directed towards the hair by an outlet. Often, oneappliance is provided with different attachments, each having adifferent outlet configuration and thus a different function, forexample drying, curling or volumising. Depending on the style desired,the air may or may not be heated. The attachment may include bristlesonto which hair is wrapped and held for styling.

The appliance will have at least one user operated button which may be apush button or a sliding button. One feature that is advantageous is acold shot which is used once a hair tress has been styled to quicklycool the hair and set the style. Most appliances have a separate buttonfor the cold shot which means a user must activate two buttons whensetting the hair, the cold shot and then a separate button to turn theappliance off. For the time interval between releasing the cold shot andturning the appliance off, the hair will have fluid and possibly heatflowing through it which can affect the style that has been created.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to some embodiments, the invention provides a handheldappliance comprising a user operable button, a switch and an actuatorincluding an arm extending between the button and the switch wherein thebutton has three linearly spaced positions each position correspondingto a different state for the switch.

According to some embodiments, the invention provides a single buttonhaving three linearly spaced positions corresponding to three differentconditions of, e.g., temperature or flow or a combination thereof. Thebutton is connected to an actuator which includes an arm which enablesthe button to be longitudinally spaced from the switch. This allows fora relatively shallow user interface as the switch is not connecteddirectly to the button.

Preferably, the appliance comprises an outer wall wherein the button ispositioned adjacent an external surface of the outer wall and is movablerelative thereto and the actuator and switch are positioned adjacent aninternal surface of the outer wall and longitudinally spaced from thebutton.

Preferably, the arm comprises a surface adapted to engage with theswitch. The arm is elongate and has a structure. At or near the distalend of the arm from the button, the arm preferably comprises a surface,the surface may be an internal or an external surface of the arm andthis surface is adapted to engage with the switch. The switch preferablyincludes a lever and the lever is moved by contact with the surface. Inone embodiment the lever has a first position and a second position andin another embodiment the lever also comprises a third position.

The second position of the lever is preferably a neutral position wherethe lever is not in contact with the surface. Preferably, when the leveris in the first position, the surface engages with the lever. Thesurface moves the lever from the neutral position. In one embodiment,the arm is provided with a second surface and the second surface engageswith the lever to produce a movement to the third position. Preferably,the surface is an internal surface. Preferably, the second surface is aninternal surface. An internal surface is a surface provided within thestructure of the arm. The arm, is preferably provided with a recesswhich is formed from one or more of the first and/or second surfaces.The recess is an indentation within the structure of the arm and ispreferably V-shaped. Preferably, the lever is housed within the recess.In this embodiment the recess is sized such that the neutral position isapproximately central to the recess and is not in significant contactwith any surface of the recess such that the lever is not moved from theneutral position when the switch is in the second position.

Preferably, the lever is part of a detector switch, a non-latchingsprung switch which moves back into the neutral or second position whenthere is no external force applied to the switch. Such switches aresuitable for use with heat and flow settings of the appliance where anumber of different options can be selected by the user via a singlebutton which preferably slides between each position.

In some embodiments a single user operated button is used to provide twofunctions. Preferably, the switch comprises a first switch and a secondswitch. In a preferred embodiment, the first switch and the secondswitch are longitudinally spaced. Preferably, the arm comprises a firstsurface adapted to engage with the first switch and a further surfaceadapted to engage with the second switch. In one embodiment, the armcomprises a first side and the first surface is located on the firstside. Preferably, the arm comprises a second side and the furthersurface is located on the second side. The button is connected to anactuator which sequentially activates a first switch and a second switchdependant on the position of the button. Preferably, the second switchis a push switch.

In a preferred embodiment, the actuator comprises a housing. Preferably,the housing comprises a movable protrusion for engaging with the button.Preferably, the protrusion is attached at one end to the arm and at theother end to the button. Thus, as the button is moved, the protrusionand the arm move. The button is preferably moved in a linear manner anda user slides the button from one position to another. Preferably, theprotrusion comprises three linearly spaced positions each of whichcorrespond to one of each of the button positions.

In one embodiment, one of the three linearly spaced positions of theprotrusion is a temporary position. Preferably, a first and a second ofthe three linearly spaced positions is defined by a detent. In oneembodiment, a third of the three linearly spaced positions of theprotrusion is defined by a detent. Alternatively, a third of the threelinearly spaced positions of the protrusion is defined by a user actingagainst a bias of a spring. In a preferred embodiment, the housingfurther comprises a spring wherein a third of the three linearly spacedpositions of the protrusion is produced when the user operated button ispushed against the spring. Preferably, the spring biases the protrusiontowards the second position. Thus, when the user pushes the buttontowards the third position the arm is pushed against a spring and thethird position is only produced whilst the user applies a force againstthe spring. As soon as the user releases the force on the button, thespring biases the arm and the protrusion back to the second position.

The use of a detent provides feedback to the user that a differentposition has been selected. In addition, to the feel of the switchchanging position, it is possible to create an audible noise for theuser as the protrusion is moved over a boundary between two adjacentdetents.

In one embodiment, the invention provides a single button having threepositions corresponding to off, on and cold shot respectively, thus theuser can quickly move from cold shot to off by operating the singlebutton. Preferably, the cold shot condition or state is corresponds tothe third position, i.e. the position of the protrusion that is biasedby a spring. Thus, this position is a temporary position and the usermust keep pressure on the button in order to keep this conditionactivated. In this embodiment, there are two switches, an on switch andsubsequently a cold shot switch. Preferably, the on switch is a pushbutton switch and the cold shot is a latching switch.

In a preferred embodiment, the appliance is a hair care appliance andpreferably, a hot styling device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described by way of example, with reference tothe accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 shows an appliance on which a user interface according to theinvention can be utilised;

FIGS. 2a and 2b show side views of a user interface with and withoutbuttons respectively;

FIG. 3 shows the radially inner surface of actuators according to theinvention;

FIG. 4 shows a cross section through part of an actuator according tothe invention;

FIG. 5 shows a cross section through an alternative actuator accordingto the invention;

FIG. 6 shows an isometric view of an actuator according to theinvention;

FIG. 7a shows a side view of a user interface with all buttons in thefirst position;

FIG. 7b shows a side view of a user interface with all buttons in thesecond position;

FIG. 7c shows a side view of a user interface with all buttons in thethird position;

FIG. 8 shows a cross section through an appliance according to theinvention; and

FIG. 9 shows a cross section through one of the buttons of theappliance.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 1, an example of a hand held appliance 10 is shown.The appliance has a handle 210 and an attachment 20 for styling hair. Inorder to enable a user to create different styles and to give theappliance multi functionality, the attachment 20 is removable and can bereplaced with an alternative attachment. In addition, the attachment 20can be removed to allow easier storage of the appliance when not in use.The handle 210 includes a number of different user operated buttons 30,138 enabling the user to select between a number of different heat andflow settings. The appliance includes a fan unit and heater (both notshown), in use the fan unit draws fluid in through a fluid inlet 212,optionally heats the fluid which is then emitted by the fluid outlet 22in the attachment 20.

This appliance 10 has two different button arrangements for controllingthe appliance. In this embodiment, both arrangements have threedifferent settings but one arrangement controls a single switch whereasthe other controls two switches. A first button arrangement 30 is moresuitable for controlling a parameter of the appliance such as heat orflow and this button type controls a single switch. The second buttonarrangement 130 is suitable for controlling two different aspects suchas turning the appliance on and providing a cold shot function.Alternatively, the two different aspects could be temperature or flowwith a cold shot function but these options are more restrictive as thecold shot could only be used with the highest or lowest of thesefunctions and that may not always be appropriate.

Referring now to FIGS. 2a to 7c in particular, the first buttonarrangement 30 will be described. The first button arrangement 30 has asingle switch 32 with a lever 36 movable between first 36 a, second 36 band third 36 c positions. An actuator 40 extends between a button 38 andthe switch 32, the actuator 40 has a protrusion 42 for engaging with thebutton 38, the protrusion 42 is attached to an arm 44 which extends tothe switch 32. The protrusion 42 is housed within a housing 46. Thehousing 46 has an aperture 48 through which the protrusion 42 extends.The housing 46 includes three detents 50 each one defining a position ofthe button 38, protrusion 42, arm 44 and lever 36. A ball 52 is adaptedto move between the three detents 50 and a spring 54 biases the ball 52into one of the three detents 50 until a further movement of the button38 occurs. The spring 54 is at least partially housed within a recess 42a provided internal of the protrusion 42 thus as the button 38 is movedthe ball 52 also moves between detents 50.

At or near the distal end 44 a of the arm 44 from the housing, a recess56 is provided. The recess 56 is generally V-shaped and is adapted tohouse and retain the lever 36. In a first position 36 a, the leverengages with an internal surface 58 of the recess 56. A second position36 b of the lever corresponds to a neutral position of the lever 36,where it sits within the recess 56 without being pushed or pulled; thisis the middle button position. In a third position 36 c, the leverengages with a second surface 60 of the recess 56. In the first andthird positions, the lever 36 is retained in the position by the forceapplied by the spring 54 which biases ball 52 into a detent 50.

The button arrangement 30 additionally includes a button plate 62 whichsits between the button 38 and the protrusion 42. The handle 210 has anouter wall 214 and in order for the button 38 to move or slide betweeneach position, an aperture 216 is formed in the outer wall 214 whichaccommodates the sliding between three positions thus the aperture 216is larger than the button 38. The button plate 62 is located inside theouter wall 214 and is sized to completely cover the aperture 216regardless of the position of the button 38. The button plate 62prevents direct ingress of debris into the handle 210.

The second button arrangement 130 will now be described; in thisembodiment, components illustrated and already described in relation tothe first button arrangement 30 have like reference numerals. The secondbutton arrangement 130 has a first switch 132 and a second switch 150.In this example, the first switch 132 provides the off to on functionand the second switch 150 provides a cold shot. When the second button138 is in the off position as shown in FIG. 7a neither the first switch132 nor the second switch 150 are activated. When the second button 138is moved one position, as shown in FIGS. 2a and 7b , a push button 134provided on a surface of the first switch 132 is engaged and theappliance turns on.

A second actuator 140 extends between the second button 138 and thefirst switch 132. The second actuator 140 has a protrusion 42 forengaging with the second button 138. The protrusion 42 is housed withina second housing 146. The second housing 146 has an aperture 48 throughwhich the protrusion 42 extends. The second housing 146 includes twodetents 50 each one defining a position of the second button 138 and asecond arm 144. A ball 52 is adapted to move between the two detents 50and a spring 54 is provided to bias the ball 52 into one of the twodetents 50 until a further movement of the second button 138 occurs. Thespring 54 is at least partially housed within a recess 42 a providedinternal of the protrusion 42 thus as the second button 138 is moved theball 52 also moves between detents 50.

The second actuator 140 has a surface 158 for engaging with the pushbutton 134, as the second button 138 is moved from the off position tothe on position by a user, the second arm 144 moves and the surface 158engages with the push button 134 and depresses the push button 134.

The second button 138 can be moved to a third position but this thirdposition is not defined by a detent, instead it is only effected whenthe user applies a pressure to the second button 138 when the secondbutton 138 is in the second position. The distal end 140 b of theactuator 140 from the first switch 132 is shaped to receive a spring152. When a user pushes the second button 138 and protrusion 42 from thesecond position to the third position, the ball 52 moves out of themiddle detent 50 b and against the action of the spring 152. The secondarm 144 has a second surface 160 formed near the arm end 144 a distalfrom the second housing 146 and this second surface 160 engages with thesecond switch 150 when the second button 138 is pushed against thespring 152. The second switch 150 has a second lever 154 which is pushedfrom a neutral or free position when engaged by the second surface 160and whilst the second lever 154 is out of this neutral position, theheater (not shown) is deactivated and a cold shot provided.

The first switch 132 and the second switch 150 are longitudinally spacedand the push button 134 of the first switch 132 remains engaged when thesecond button 138 and protrusion 42 are moved to the third position.

The second arm 144 has a first side 156 and this first side 156 includesthe surface 158 which engages with the push button 134. The second armhas a second side 162 and the second side includes the second surface160. This is advantageous as when both switches are engaged, there isforce applied to both sides of the second arm 144.

In this embodiment, the first button arrangement 30,30 a is used twice,once for temperature settings and once for flow settings. Conveniently,the pair of first button arrangements 30,30 a are separated by thesecond button arrangement 130. This means the user has a small area onthe outer wall 214 where all the controls for the product are situated.In order to assist the user, the second button 138 is larger than thefirst buttons 38 and is displaced along the outer wall 214 to form atriangular UI (user interface) 180 (FIG. 2a ). Over time the user willbe able to identify the second button 138 by touch and change thesetting without needing to see the UI.

In the example shown (see FIG. 8), all the switches are mounted into asubstrate 70, for example a printed circuit board (PCB). Such substratesare usually flat, but so that the substrate 70 does not take up asignificant proportion of the internal space in of the handle 210 in oneembodiment the substrate is formed in two pieces 70 a, 70 b with aflexible portion 72 connecting the two parts. This enables the substrate70 to be bent slightly into a V-shape which more closely follows theshape of the outer wall 214 of the handle 210. As the fluid flow pathextends through the inside of the handle 210, bending the substrate 70causes less restriction to fluid flowing inside the handle 210. Thesecond arm 144 is positioned approximately centrally on the substrate,over the flexible portion 72 and engages the push button 134 on one sidewhich corresponds to one piece 70 a of the substrate 70. The second arm144 engages the second switch 150 on the other side which corresponds tothe other piece 70 b of the substrate. Whilst the second arm 144 extendsaway from the second housing 146 in a first direction X-X which isparallel to a longitudinal axis A-A of the handle 210 it also extends ina second direction Y-Y substantially perpendicular to the firstdirection. This produces an L-shaped profile near the distal end 144 aof the second arm 144 from the second housing 46. The second directionY-Y extends from the outer wall 214 towards the substrate 70. TheL-shaped profile enables a single arm 144 to engage with both the firstswitch 132 and the second switch 150 across the bend of the substrate70.

Referring now to FIG. 9, in this embodiment, in addition to the UIhaving the user operated buttons 38, 138 a further button 100 isprovided. This further button 100 operates an attachment mechanism (notshown) for retaining and releasing the attachment 20 with respect to thehandle 210.

The outer wall 214 of the handle 210 is elliptical in cross-section. Thehandle 210 has a major axis B-B and a minor axis C-C. The major axis isthe one having the larger radius and diameter. Having an ellipticalhandle 210 provides a number of benefits: it orients the handle 210 in auser's hand; and it provides increased space internal to the handle 210compared to the circular equivalent of the minor axis.

It is natural for a user to orient the major axis into the web betweenthe thumb and index finger. The user operated buttons 38,138 and 100 areprovided proximate the major axis enabling easy access by the thumb orindex finger. In one embodiment, the further button 100 is diametricallyopposite the second button 138. This has a number of advantages, itassists in orienting the user as to the orientation of the appliance inthe user's hand, it balances the product and it is visually appealing.

The user interface 180 comprises a first button arrangement 30,30 a anda second button arrangement 130 and is provided at a first vertex 182 ofthe major axis B-B. Specifically, in the embodiment shown, the secondbutton arrangement 130 is provided on the first vertex 182 with each ofthe first button arrangements 30,30 a being radially offset one to eachside of the first vertex 182 in order to form the triangular userinterface 180. The second of the three user operated buttons comprisesan on/off switch. Conveniently, the pair of first button arrangementsare referred to as the first and third buttons and these controltemperature and flow through the appliance respectively. Advantageously,the first and third buttons are longitudinally displaced from the secondbutton and form a base of the triangular user interface. The secondbutton 138 is positioned at the apex of the triangle.

The further user operated button 100 is provided on the second vertex184 of the major axis B-B. The further user operated button 100 istherefore diametrically opposite the second button arrangement 130.

The increased space internal to the handle 210 is achieved without theoverall impression of the diameter of the handle 210 being significantlyincreased. The use of the ellipse masks the size of the major axis.Also, having a handle with a circular cross section the size of themajor axis would be too large for many people to hold comfortably.

The user interface 180 is triangular and has one user operated button ateach vertex of the triangle. As there are two of the first buttonarrangement 30,30 a, in one embodiment the triangular user interface 180is in the form of an isosceles triangle and the two first buttonarrangements are provided at a respective corner of the base of thetriangle.

In one embodiment, the further user operated button 100 islongitudinally displaced from the user interface 180. One reason forthis is that this further user operated button 100 operates anattachment mechanism by which attachments 20 are attached to andreleased from the handle 210 of the appliance 10 thus this mechanism issimplified if the further user operated button 100 is adjacent orproximate a first end 210 a of the handle 210 to which the attachments20 are attached. A second benefit of this arrangement is that theinternal mechanisms which function to facilitate the operation of thefurther user operated button 100 and the user interface 180 can beseparated within the handle 210 thus, any internal reduction in thecross sectional area due to these internal mechanisms is longitudinallyseparate within the handle 210. A third reason is that thisconfiguration naturally assists a user in positioning the appliance in ahand having the triangular user interface 180 with the first, second andthird buttons all accessible by a thumb and the further user operatedbutton 100 diametrically opposite and closer to the first end 210 a ofthe handle 210. In this embodiment, the second button 138 is on a vertexof the user interface 180 distal to the further user operated button 100and the first end 210 a of the handle 210.

In the example described, the first button arrangement 130 has threesettings; this is not essential so there can be more settings or fewersettings. In addition, the first and second switches are provided inopposite sides of the arm again this is not essential and depending onspace restraints, the two switches may be provided on the same side ofthe arm.

The two first button arrangements 30,30 a are slightly different in theembodiment shown; there are slight differences in the configuration ofeach recess 60,60 a. These differences are merely due to spaceconsiderations on the substrate 70. So, the two recesses 60,60 a mayalternatively be the same.

In the Figures, and in particular in FIGS. 7a to 7c , the buttons areshown in the same position at the same time; this was merely for ease ofexplaining the invention and each combination of each of the threebutton positions can be used with the others. For example, eachtemperature setting can be used with each of the flow settings when themachine is on and the cold shot can be used with any flow setting.

The invention has been described in detail with respect to a hot stylingdevice however, it is applicable to any appliance that draws in a fluidand directs the outflow of that fluid from the appliance.

The appliance can be used with or without a heater; the action of theoutflow of fluid at high velocity has a drying effect.

The fluid that flows through the appliance is generally air, but may bea different combination of gases or gas and can include additives toimprove performance of the appliance or the impact the appliance has onan object the output is directed at for example, hair and the styling ofthat hair.

The invention is not limited to the detailed description given above.Variations will be apparent to the person skilled in the art.

1. A handheld appliance comprising a user operable button; a first switch; a second switch; and an actuator, the actuator including an arm extending between the button, the first switch, and the second switch, wherein the button has three linearly spaced positions, each position corresponding to a different state for the first switch or the second switch.
 2. The appliance of claim 1, wherein the arm comprises a first surface configured to engage with the first switch or the second switch.
 3. The appliance of claim 2, wherein the first switch comprises a lever and the lever is moved by contact with the first surface.
 4. The appliance of claim 3, wherein the lever has a first position and a second position.
 5. The appliance of claim 4, wherein the second position of the lever is a neutral position where the lever is not in contact with the first surface.
 6. The appliance of claim 4, wherein when the lever is in the first position, the first surface engages with the lever.
 7. The appliance of claim 4, wherein the lever also comprises a third position.
 8. The appliance of claim 7, wherein the arm is provided with a second surface and the second surface engages with the lever to produce a movement of the lever to the third position.
 9. The appliance of claim 6, wherein at least one of the first surface and the second surface are internal surfaces.
 10. The appliance of claim 7, wherein the arm is provided with a recess formed from one or more of the first surface and the second surface.
 11. The appliance of claim 10, wherein the recess is V-shaped.
 12. The appliance of claim 10, wherein the lever is housed within the recess.
 13. The appliance of claim 1, wherein the first switch and the second switch are longitudinally spaced.
 14. The appliance of claim 1, wherein the arm comprises a first surface adapted to engage with the first switch and a second surface adapted to engage with the second switch.
 15. The appliance of claim 14, wherein the arm comprises a first side and the first surface is located on the first side.
 16. The appliance of claim 14, wherein the arm comprises a second side and the second surface is located on the second side.
 17. The appliance of claim 13, wherein the second switch is a push switch.
 18. The appliance of claim 1, wherein the actuator comprises a housing.
 19. The appliance of claim 18, wherein the housing comprises a movable protrusion for engaging with the button.
 20. The appliance of claim 19, wherein the protrusion comprises three linearly spaced positions which correspond to one of each of the button positions.
 21. The appliance of claim 20, wherein a first and a second of the three linearly spaced positions is defined by a detent.
 22. The appliance of claim 21, wherein a third of the three linearly spaced positions of the protrusion is defined by a detent.
 23. The appliance of claim 21, wherein the housing further comprises a spring and a third of the three linearly spaced positions of the protrusion is produced when the user operated button is pushed against the spring.
 24. The appliance of claim 23, wherein the spring biases the protrusion towards the second position. 